Unconventional presidential inaugurations are nothing new to Bruce Murphy, Ed.D., who was officially inaugurated on Jan. 28 as the 14^th president of Centenary University in a ceremony held virtually due to the ongoing pandemic. In 1984-85, Dr. Murphy, who was then serving with the US Army, was on the inaugural committee for President Ronald Reagan.

Prior to President Reagan’s inauguration for a second term, weather reports predicted that an Arctic blast could bring wind chills of 20 degrees below zero to Washington, DC. This would mean potentially dangerous conditions for a ceremony traditionally held outside on the steps of the Capitol.

Two days before the event, Dr. Murphy’s team contacted the Army’s Northern Warfare Center in Alaska, which determined that the severe weather could cause casualties.

“With one day’s notice, we moved the inauguration indoors to the Capitol Rotunda,” Dr. Murphy, a retired lieutenant colonel, recalled during his inaugural address.

In planning his own inauguration, which he had originally hoped would be in person when he took office in January 2020, less than two months before in-person instruction was halted due to the pandemic, he reflected on President Reagan accepting the change in order to save lives. He also thought about the Class of 2020, whose commencement was virtual.

“How could I do anything less for my own inauguration?” Dr. Murphy said in his address.

Top priorities during his tumultuous first year were ensuring that Centenary students not miss a day of instruction during the pandemic and the return of in-person classes for the fall semester. A new program called Centenary Choice now gives students the option of attending classes fully in-person, online, or in a HyFlex format combining the two. Thanks to stringent COVID-19 mitigation efforts, the university completed in-person instruction, as planned, on Nov. 24, and has now started the spring semester under the Centenary Choice model.

Noting these successes in his inaugural address, Dr. Murphy thanked Centenary faculty and staff for going above and beyond: “These efforts allowed us to keep our team intact, without furloughs, without pay cuts, and without layoffs. Through it all, we have continued to do the business of the university.”

Other accomplishments during Dr. Murphy’s first year at Centenary include advancing a new strategic plan to establish the University as the intellectual, economic, and cultural heart of the Skylands region, as well as several new academic programs, partnerships with other institutions of higher learning, and a Diversity, Inclusion, Belonging Advisory Board at Centenary: “In short, my vision for the University is the encouragement of a more collaborative, supportive, forward-thinking, and strategic community that embraces lifelong learning, greater access to higher education, and pathways to career opportunity.”